Aussie Activists Protest Government’s Weak Climate Target

Friends of the Earth has planned an extensive day of protest against the Australian Prime Minister’s declaration that Australia will decrease its carbon emissions a mere 5 percent by 2020. To illustrate the problem, activists dressed in emergency gear will surround four separate government offices with sandbags today.

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“A five per cent target locks Australia into runaway climate change. This target will not stop drought, it will not save the Great Barrier Reef, and it will not prevent ice melting and the sea rising,” said Friends of the Earth spokesperson Damian Lawson. “This is an emergency and the government must act within this term. Our carbon emissions must peak in the next year and then continuously decrease if we are to have any hope of avoiding catastrophic climate change.”

The activists will sandbag the offices of Finance Minister Lindsay Tanner, Wills MP Kelvin Thomson, Tourism Minister Martin Ferguson and Health Minister Nicola Roxon. The action is part of a two-day protest which will also include sit-ins and marches.

Australia’s carbon emissions goals are much lower than the European Union, which seaks to lower its emissions by 20 percent by 2020.

Photo Credit: thebeanblog on Flickr under Creative Commons license.

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